starting with a full page
Blackout Poetry: Starting with a Full Page
When I was architecture school, I preferred projects that had more limitations than others. I felt completely lost and stuck when there were little to no parameters. Maybe it was because I came into the program with a lot of curiosity about what people long for. I already had a degree in psychology, or better said, my deep interest in people lead to my almost accidental psychology degree, a full collection of electives that made a degree. To me, what makes a building successful is how it serves its purpose for the occupants.
It is the same for me in my visual arts practice. I find creativity and innovation come most easily for me when I am working through the givens, the challenges or obstacles. The fruit seems to come as a response to what is there. Now when I make abstract art, I more freely put some stuff on the canvas, color blocks, marks, lines, something I can respond to, add to it, or paint over. I am choosing what supports my mood or the developing message for the piece. I am letting go of the rest, pushing it back so the message can become more clear.
When writing, the preference is the same. There must be a really good prompt that puts a scene or experience in my head, or words already on the page that I can sort through. Much the same way I play with abstract marks on the canvas. Words and phrases either connect with my current feeling, mood, or interest, or they don't. While working with a page of text, I select words or phrases that hold my attention. I use some sort of media to cover the rest of the words. Almost always, the words and phrases that remain give me deeper understanding of myself. Sometimes the remaining message reminds me what matters to me, the me I've always been. Sometimes the message helps me more fully see how I feel and what I seek in that moment.
During November's Creative Cafe, our check-in chit chat, the response to "What are you bringing today?" included some enthusiasm for tarot and oral card decks. So we made an addition to the plan for the session. We pulled out some beautiful decks of cards to add more concepts and perspectives to the blackout poetry practice. There was more content to draw a response. Some universal themes became part of our selection process. We each practiced mindfulness and fought the urge to get analytical. We stayed with our emotions, our current state or energy, or our intuitive response rather than our analytical brains. We get plenty of analytical practice outside of Creative Cafes!